Danny Carey grew up in a very typical,
middle-class American house in Paola, Kansas. His father was a manager for a
large insurance company and his mother was a school teacher. Danny has one older
brother and one younger brother. Danny's earliest musical memory was when his
father took him into the music library at the University of Kansas and played
The Planets by Gustov Holst. Danny started taking lessons when he was ten or
eleven, just on the snare drum in school band, and then again when he got his
first kit at thirteen. Danny received a scholarship in High School to go to the
Conservatory of Music in Kansas City.

Danny studied music for over three years at the University of Missouri. He
had a couple of offers to play basketball at small colleges, but knew he wasn't
good enough to play major college basketball or to go pro. Danny spent years
working on his rudiments and doing drum corps. He always loved Billy Cobham and
Buddy Rich because no matter how fast they played, you could hear every note.
When he was in college he got a lot of classical training, doing recitals for
three and a half years. He could have earned a degree if he stuck it out a while
longer, but just wanted to play the drum set a little more, so he bailed on
school when an opportunity came to go on the road with a band.

In 1986, Danny moved to Los Angeles, and spent four years there before
anything really happened. However, at that time he was heavily into electronic
drums. He was playing an electronic kit with real cymbals, and played the clubs.
Then he got more into real drums, and attributes that to finally finding a
quality set that sounded good. Danny also worked as a session player for Green
Jello, Pygmy Love Circus, and Carole King. Danny's day job in LA was working
in a tape duplication house. Then he met Adam Jones through Tom Morello of Rage
(Against The Machine). Danny was also living beside Maynard. He never auditioned
for them (Keenan and Jones). He felt sorry for them, because they would invite
people over to play, and they wouldn't show up, so he would fill in.

Danny still loves playing jazz when he gets the chance. He is also working on
a side project called ZAUM, which works in an electronic medium. Danny has also
been involved in other side projects, including a TV sitcom called
"Sibs."